


coming up roses (after all)

by pflaume



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Crushes, Fluff, If You Squint - Freeform, M/M, Slow Burn, cant function around jeonghan, just fluff i swear no angst, kink shop but no smut, meanie and seokshua, on major league!!, seungcheol is a pining idiot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-16
Updated: 2019-08-16
Packaged: 2020-09-01 10:29:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20256637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pflaume/pseuds/pflaume
Summary: It must have been a bit staggering for Seungcheol. For a man who isn't that inclined with unplanned surprises, one waltzed casually through— Jeonghan might as well wear a big red silk ribbon for show.





	coming up roses (after all)

**Author's Note:**

> I lost sleep over this. I am suddenly on word vomit because someone asked me to water the jc tag and y'all know I'm weak so I whipped this bs in two days.
> 
> I'm sorry for this mess.
> 
> Jeonghan cute enthusiasts, where you at?

It must have been a bit staggering for Seungcheol. As a man who isn't really that inclined with unplanned surprises, he managed to swing through three years of college with the littlest bit of attention thrown to him: a statement which was always disagreed by his group (two) of friends, but that's what he generally feels like—at least for himself.

Seungcheol probably has leaned slightly closer to a routine: attend college for four to six hours, cater himself to a work that aids his student loans and maybe show up at parties to get shitfaced drunk, if he can be so lucky with his already cramped schedule.

It wasn't that he was a snob and picky with people he associates with. When he was in his first year, he found himself a roommate (or a platonic boyfriend he so insists) in the form of a lanky, tall guy named Jeon Wonwoo, who so as breathes the same video game language as Seungcheol. Freshman Seungcheol found out Wonwoo was a year younger than him but when he was in high school, he coded an app that helped the students track their schedules every day and follow through their coverages during exam seasons. The app did not make it to the public but it earned him the acceleration and the golden ticket to college. Through three years of Overwatch, sour cream chips and exhausting all-nighters to pull projects and cram exams, they are basically attached by the hip.

When his roommate introduced a _boyfriend_ to him, Seungcheol does not even blink in flinging himself to give Wonwoo a hug. The younger might haven't been that vocal with everything but Seungcheol wasn't aloof and the grateful smile that Wonwoo gave that day is still engraved in the back of Seungcheol's mind until today.

In comes Kim Mingyu, savior of Seungcheol or so he likes to hold it against him for leading the man to what his job is today. There's a lot of _'never's_ when it comes to this man: never leaves Wonwoo's side, never fails to annoy Seungcheol with his incessant bumping against objects that he claims to be moving by themselves—(never leave him alone for more than three hours in the apartment or he starts cleaning your own private space)—and almost always never shuts up. Also, there's nothing ordinary with Mingyu: visual, talent, brain _extraordinaire_; so it wasn't that much of a shock when he snatches Seungcheol a job in a, yes, a kink shop.

It was routinary: his newly shared apartment with Wonwoo and Mingyu, university, work and parties. But everyone knows Seungcheol is not so lucky.

For a man who isn't that inclined with unplanned surprises, one waltzed casually through—he might as well wear a big red silk ribbon for show.

•••

"The deliveries are already carefully stacked in the back room, _hyung_. You're welcome." Seungcheol doesn't even notice Mingyu's hand tapping on his shoulder as he squeezes them both through the door of the shop. "I'll be cooking later for dinner so just dig through the fridge when you get home. Wonwoo and I will be late," the younger calls, a step halfway on the pavement and into the street, but Seungcheol remained not responding.

Mingyu watches how his _hyung_ makes a beeline through the shop, past the counter and towards Jihoon? When he realizes the commotion, Mingyu nods as if in discernment. Interesting.

Seungcheol stands in front of a wide-eyed, curious newbie, who's dressed in a soft cream pullover, which makes him look like he was withdrawn out of a high school, _maybe he was? kink shops aren't illegal but damn, they can be shady with recruitment. _Jihoon was, also _curiously_, giving a rather hurried orientation.

When Jihoon realizes he's literally standing there in his usual jeans and tight-fitting white shirt (that he despises, by the way, but company policies or he gets kicked out), the cashier gives a squeak, "Thank fucking god, you're here! I'm gonna leave Jeonghan to you-"

It was unfair, Seungcheol thinks, as he takes time to look at highschool-looking Jeonghan (his supposed-to-be name), with his curled mouth and soft sweater, innocent, wide eyes that stare back at him with such inquisitiveness as if he's eager to listen what Seungcheol is about to say. He can clearly hear _Sean Kingston's Beautiful Girls_ tunneled inside his ears except that this Jeonghan is clearly a male and that the only line from the song he can remind himself with is _'you'll have me suicidal, suicidal'_.

_'High-school, curious, innocent'_-looking newbie Jeonghan will definitely be the cause of his death.

"What's going on?" is what Seungcheol says first. He pushes through in between the two and accidentally knocks off Jeonghan's outstretched hand that he did not notice he offered because he was too busy listening to Sean Kingston. _Anyway!_

Jihoon gets dragged into the back room by Seungcheol, nevertheless. 

"Didn't you know about Jun's notice last week? He found a new job inside his university." 

"Well," Seungcheol isn't dumb and he's certainly aware of what's happening inside the shop but he might as well pluck his remaining braincells as the slight-to-no interaction with the newbie left him mush. "Why wasn't I informed that there will be a replacement that fast? He looks underaged, Jihoon. Could you even trust a kink shop to him?"

"Cheol," Jihoon gives him a look, stern and unforgiving and Seungcheol _knows_. The younger starts to pack his things in a hurry to attend his afternoon classes. "I'm running late. Don't be too hard on Jeonghan. And I'll tell Jun you miss him already."

After five (or ten?) minutes of debating against himself whether he should continue Jihoon's short-lived orientation.. who was Seungcheol kidding? He was certainly shying away from the new employee in the other side of the door. He was supposed to aim for straight _As_ in his entirety in college, not get distracted and now he's not sure if he was still even straight. _Oh, for fuck's sake!_

Seungcheol does push himself through the dreaded door though, except he wasn't really emotionally ready to have Jeonghan point at him a bright pink _vibrator_ with a slight frown in his face and a cute pout as he grumbles, "I'm not a high school student and I can certainly manage myself well."

"Don't touch things in the display."

Fuck Sean Kingston, really.

•••

It's not the infatuation talking.. _per se_, but Jeonghan does end up particularly good at every task at hand. Also not to mention how the white shirt (supposed to be uniform) complements his body line well but was Seungcheol gonna say anything? No.

Jeonghan doesn't bother customers that come in and only walk around the shop (customers that actually purchase things are rare especially with the onset of online buying). He also does not ogle at them and tries his best to mind his own business especially when people ring the oddest of item combinations on the counter.

They ended up _casual and civil_, Seungcheol could say, if _casual and civil_ meant swerving right around when he finds himself in the same aisle as Jeonghan and only try for little to no conversation in every shift they share with—which is Seungcheol's every waking moment inside the shop. 

Sporting a major crush on a co-worker isn't that hard, (Yes, Seungcheol might have admitted in between weeks that he probably is attracted to the newbie and that he wasn't indeed straight) but Seungcheol seems to not have his bearings right because he can't seem to act completely appropriate around Jeonghan— read: _act_ encompasses: slight nodding, a deliberate cough and a frown.

It's just really hard to not fucking blush everytime Jeonghan catches him staring. There was once, Jeonghan did, while the younger was mid-explaining to a customer about an inquiry. He full-on beamed, a perfect set of teeth on display and the perfect yellow lighting to match the glow of his blond, cropped hair.. whilst his hand excitedly waves a _dildo_ at the older.

Seungcheol wants to faint.

They get on speaking terms a few weeks later, when Seungcheol is coherent enough to actually produce a cohesive sentence and look at Jeonghan in the eyes. It's also during this time that he realizes Jeonghan has a knack of falling asleep in the weirdest of places (imagine Seungcheol's utter surprise when he found Jeonghan knocked asleep on the sex swing, assembled for when customers want a product display, inside the back room— what a sight).

Seungcheol has the counter to himself, two hours and thirty minutes after he declined dinner with Jeonghan with a disdain reason that they should not leave the shop unattended. Seungcheol does not want to choke on his unchewed food trying to take a better look at how adorable probably the younger is when he eats, _thank you very much._

He finds Jeonghan sleeping by the lockers, cramped on three plastic chairs as a makeshift cot and Seungcheol can't find it in himself to wake up the blond, especially that upon closer inspection, Jeonghan is clutching a paper handout labelled "chemistry" on it. It's pressed against his chest and Seungcheol wants to coo.

He stirs though and the dumbass does what he's usually good at: he panics. Seungcheol shoots toward the chairs in blind haste and finds himself latching onto Jeonghan's waist so he doesn't unconsciously roll to his side and fall on his ass.

"Hey," is what he hears, groggy and sweet. Jeonghan's voice upon waking up can be compared to honey and it is so, so, close. He's so close to Jeonghan he can actually see the specks of brown reflecting in his eyes. He's afraid if he moves a bit closer, he might throw up his heart on the floor. "It's okay, you can let go of me now. I'm fully awake."

It's followed by a soft giggle. _Heavens help Choi Seungcheol._

"Is it my turn by the counter already?" queries Jeonghan when the older doesn't move as much as straighten his shirt and stand by the door awkwardly. "It's nine, Cheol. Why haven't you woken me up?"

_Cheol_.. oh boy.

"It's fine," Seungcheol hurries, looking down at a very disoriented Jeonghan, who obviously isn't ready to take upon the job with unrest in his shoulders and bags under his eyes, and Seungcheol just might be ready to take on the whole metropolitan by himself so Jeonghan could rest. Which is not really a bad idea. "I had dinner already," he lies. "You can sleep some more. You look tired. I'll wake you up later when we close down."

"No, what are you saying? It's my jo-"

Jeonghan's already halfway in putting on his sneakers when Seungcheol walks back up to him and pats his head. "I'll be fine. Besides, it's not peak hour. I won't snitch." My god, was he insane.

"You'd do that for me?" Jeonghan was looking up at him through his lashes. Again with his wide eyes and innocent face, perfect fringes and very.. interesting.. mouth.

And, "Yes, of course, sure-" 

"I'll help you close the shop down?"

Seungcheol rigidly turns around and doesn't look back.

They did close the shop down together and when Jeonghan offered to walk Seungcheol home as a sign of his "gratefulness" for letting him sleep through his shift, Seungcheol declined.

He pretends he doesn't notice the corners of Jeonghan's lips pull down to a frown.

•••

In a span of two months, Seungcheol picks up on things about Jeonghan, like how he easily gets cold.

The winter rolls in alarmingly fast with the ground frosted in two inches of white snow. Seungcheol learns to always open the door for Jeonghan lest he gets a heart burst at the sight of the younger waddling around the shop entrance and swaddled in thick parkas or windbreakers.

"Cold outside?" Seungcheol asks in monotone— a strategy he learned from Mingyu: to never look excited upon seeing his hopeless crush. Should he be listening to Mingyu? No.

They're stood in the doorway with Seungcheol having just closed the door behind the younger. And Jeonghan looks absolutely adorable with his red button nose and blotchy cheeks. Without much processing, Seungcheol reaches up to rub both of Jeonghan's said cheeks with his palms. It was an innocent after-thought, a passing automatic gesture but Jeonghan whines into his touch, voice soft and aching under his red scarf and Seungcheol wants to punch himself right in the jaw.

"That's nice," the younger appreciates before he wiggles in a last ditch attempt to flick the remaining cold off his system.

"Sorry I could not control the weather," is the next idiotic thing he says. Just when he thought he was over and finally normal. But Jeonghan only laughs, his still-rosy cheeks rolling up to procure such precious wide smile. "But I can control the heater inside," he blurts.

Seungcheol has a big problem.

•••

It's nowhere near fair. Especially at how absolutely weak Seungcheol is when it comes to the newbie (he isn't a newbie anymore but Seungcheol remains passive). The younger can physically slice through the gel of Seungcheol's resolve with a smile, or a pat in the cheek, which is how Seungcheol finds himself in Jeonghan's kitchen after his resolute decline of the blonde's insistence on walking him home (only three nights by the way but it's a feat to say no to Jeonghan, at least for Seungcheol).

In his defense, the blond was tangibly trembling within five minutes outside the shop.. and Seungcheol just as so happens to have brought his motorcycle.

"So you're _the_ Choi Seungcheol?" There's someone scrutinizing him from across where he is sitting by the kitchen island. He has soft features, feline eyes and a kittenish—not angelic— smile. An obnoxious big wine glass sits daintily in front of him, pink soda sloshing inside of it.

Seungcheol is not intimidated but Jeonghan saves him by the bell, "Shua, you're freaking him out. Stop embarrassing me." A hot steaming ramen gets carefully placed in front of him and Seungcheol groans audibly. Jeonghan smiles, "That's Joshua. My roommate."

"So are you divorced? Widowed? Has daddy issues?" Joshua shoots through and through Seungcheol doesn't even have the time to blink or to process the questions. His mind has already short-circuited at how delicious the ramen in front of him smells or how Jeonghan sits right beside him and is now playing with the hair on his nape. "Jeonghan has weird choices when it comes to men."

Jeonghan hates him. He gets dragged towards his bedroom along with his pink soda drink.

They stayed inside that room for minutes until Seungcheol had no choice but to commit to his dying stomach.

"Sorry about that," the older looks up from his meal to a Jeonghan in pajamas, a blush dusted pink against his pale, pale skin and he is plagued with the urge to have him inside his arms. He's well with his urges though; would be weird to suddenly hug the man. "He kind of gets a bit protective with me." Jeonghan maneuvers through the kitchen and pulls himself a strawberry milkbox from the fridge. "How's the ramen?"

"Perfect," answers Seungcheol immediately like a kid offered cookie.

Jeonghan's brow shoots up and there's a smile decorating the corner of his lips that he so tries hard to hide with a frown. "That's microwaved."

Seungcheol purses his lips, "Doesn't matter when you're hungry."

Much to Seungcheol's utter delight or surprise or sudden spike of heart rate, Jeonghan reaches across the kitchen island and leans into his space. A slight twinkle in his eyes indicates Seungcheol that maybe, just maybe Jeonghan isn't that innocent at all. "And here, I thought it's perfect because I made it for you."

It's bad, that Jeonghan is able to openly flirt like this at him and leaves him a bumbling mess of a man without so much thought.

They talk casually after that. Seungcheol learns Jeonghan's hobbies include reading novels (probably a white lie but he could accept that), soccer and sleeping. It's easy to make the younger laugh without so much punchline. It's a hearty sound, full and relentless, the kind of sound Seungcheol wants to hear all the time.

He finds Jeonghan to be witty, fast with his words and very, very playful. What else could there be that would hit Seungcheol's bullseye? Ah, his love for music. He hums when he cleans up the dishes. It's soft and under his breath but he catches the melody and was he ready to cry.

Seungcheol has it bad.

When he bids his goodbye at him, Jeonghan stands by the doorway of his apartment and watches Seungcheol with a soft smile.

"No good night kisses?" he asks, playfully.

"Nope." And the older speeds off into the night.

•••

"You like him." It's not even a question. It's a straight up declaration from none other than his bestfriend.

Joshua is now sprawled in the middle of their couch, nursing his third serving of the sparkly soda of the night and wrapped in his bath robe. Give it to his bestfriend to make everything look fancy.

"And what about it?" Jeonghan's tone is challenging as he locks the door behind him. He recalls how his day went, how he managed to crack through Seungcheol and actually invite him over. It makes him want to smile for eternity. Disgusting. "I mean, have you seen him? He's so perfect," he dreamily sighs, albeit in contradiction to his self-opinion about striking a crush. 

Joshua gives him that look. "Elaborate."

"He walked in that door during my first day and I thought, I'd be damed if I don't hit on this fine specimen. He never gave me the time of the day though. You know at first I thought I could never get through him. He never so as much look my way. Annoyed me a bit."

"So you used the Yoon Jeonghan on him?"

"Preposterous. What do you mean by that?" Jeonghan knows, everyone knows, he just likes to act all dandy and laid back.

Jisoo only rolls his eyes, _whose side is he with really?_ "You know you transform into an absolute angel whenever you like to. I'm wide-eyed innocent Yoon Jeonghan, I'm always sleepy Yoon Jeonghan, I'm oblivious Yoon Jeonghan."

Jeonghan whines. "Absolutely not!"

"Tell Seungcheol that when he realizes you're no decent angel."

"Although I did wave a couple of dildos and vibrators at him."

"Fucking unbelievable."

•••

Of course, there'll come a time that Jeonghan's innocence will come surface into Seungcheol's quiet perplexity.

He sees him three nights after, when he's done enough sulking about his barely acceptable exam results and eventually accepts Mingyu's invites to Soonyoung's parties that are held almost after every hell weeks.

Seungcheol pushed through the fair crowd and into the house with Mingyu and Wonwoo tailing him and the host was quick on his feet to welcome them.

It was automatic, as if the blond carries with him around a magnet that Seungcheol finds so, so irresistible. He spots Jeonghan perched on Jun's lap, clad in a mesh shirt that leaves little to the imagination and tight skinny jeans that draws out his legs well under the neon red and blue color of the dimmed house.

Seungcheol feels a spike in the temperature of the house.

Jeonghan, though, locks gaze with Seungcheol and with no further hesitation springs onto his feet, disappears into the crowd that starts hauling towards the kitchen.

"I've got a question," he starts, after Soonyoung pushes him down to a crouch so he could pour vodka straight down his throat. He winces (after five seconds of straight vodka) and then gets chucked with a red cup that smells like beer. "You ever had a romantic dream about someone.. like say, a friend," Wonwoo looks at him with a loopsided grin and suddenly, he does care, "Like a really platonic friend," there's iteration but he's absolutely lying through gritted teeth, "and then you wake up and now you suddenly have a subconscious crush on him."

"Who are we talking about?" Wonwoo inquires heftily, as if all he needs is a confirmation because of course, Mingyu doesn't shut up.

"Hyung, he wasn't even platonic to you in the first place. You were literally already attracted to him when he started the job."

"Shut the fuck up, Mingyu. That was a rhetorical question."

"What?" the younger chides, his drink sloshing in his red cup when the giant playfully bumps into him. "Like you're gonna blame a wet dream with your sudden change of heart."

"It wasn't- I-" Seungcheol feels a headache coming. "I never said I don't like boys, idiot."

Jeonghan shows right back up with a jean jacket. Was it good for Seungcheol's poor pining heart? Yes. But was Seungcheol done ogling at him? No.

"Was that Jeonghan?" He grabs Joshua (his left hand holds both a phone and a red cup, only party-goers can do that) by the wrist when the man passes by the trio. There's an obvious surprise written on his face, still very kitten-ish though, while he rakes his gaze from Seungcheol's thighs up to his chest and then to his face, before it morphs into realization. "Are you done checking me out?"

"You look absolutely ravishing," Joshua wasn't flirting, Seungcheol could comply that, if the sarcasm in his voice and the man latched around his waist could check out. "Jeonghan there, though, wants to uphold the innocent facade when it comes to you, which explains the jean jacket and the frantic _"why is he here"_ earlier."

Seungcheol is absolutely lost.

•••

If holding up an "innocent facade" meant having a drunk Jeonghan discard the jean jacket under the pool table, Seungcheol can't at all be mad.

He's being played, he knows, but if the pretty blond is staring right back at him with such ferocity and competitiveness in his eyes that makes Seungcheol want to drink it up whole, then might as well dig his own grave and comfortably lay down on it.

They're all fairly drunk except for himself, of course. Seungcheol gets high, gets tipsy and gets buzzed but never drunk. Jeonghan is across the end of the pool table, little bit slurry with his step as he aims to shoot a pingpong ball inside the remaining cups in front of Seungcheol.

If the man just wants to get home because he worries about Jeonghan taking a bad step and hitting his head against the edge of the pool table, no one has to know.

The tiny orange ball makes a dull clank when it hits the rim of one of the red cups. Jeonghan whines but whoever's cranking up some sensual music, Seungcheol would very much like to have a word with them because now the blond starts swaying to _Señorita_ with Junhui in the background shouting "Fuck it up Yoon Jeonghan!"

Seungcheol pretends to miss a shot.

Or his hand just malfunctioned, nobody knows.

Jeonghan did successfully managed to land a ball on Seungcheol's remaining five cups (three on his). There's hooting, mainly thanks to Seokmin— a second-year brunette who he identifies as the man clinging unto Joshua earlier— and Soonyoung.

Mingyu's giving him a pep talk about enduring whatever dare's gonna end up on him because "we need to win, hyung, or I'll never get to show my face in the uni ever again".

Seungcheol pulls the paper from under the cup and _'let your opponent strip off an item of clothing from you'_.

What grave was he talking about earlier? Seungcheol's screwed.

"Let's do it!" Wonwoo answers it for him, _oh the traitor_. A pointed look was thrown but was also discarded immediately when the crowd around them hollers.

Jeonghan ends up pressed against the pool table, their hips also connected as his hands rest on Seungcheol's waist. There's that twinkle in the back of his eyes again.. something mischievous, something exhilarating. Seungcheol chokes up on his breathing.

"You look pretty," he mumbles under his breath, soft that only Jeonghan could hear. He meant it. The choker that Jeonghan was sporting sits tight around his throat and even tightens everytime his adam's apple bobs. His cropped blond hair was pushed back; a sheen of sweat decorates his forehead and Seungcheol just wants to wreck him.

"Why, thank you," Jeonghan's fingertips ghost on the edge of his waistband. His voice was sultry and Seungcheol is now a tad bit sure Jeonghan was no angel. "But less talking, more stripping." Seungcheol took it as a shock. Jeonghan was supposed to just pull his blazer off along with the black undershirt but he feels warm hands press into the flesh of his lean stomach and travel down his side. The older jolts, his crotch making direct contact with Jeonghan's hip.

The blond grins. What the fuck?

•••

"He likes me." Jeonghan declares under a whisper with the rim of his red cup pressed against his lips. "I'm pretty sure of that."

The blond easily bounces back from alcohol. He's still a bit dazed but having been under the scrutiny of a very wet, very naked Seungcheol (the ripped jeans remain though but who was Jeonghan to complain), a sudden hard sobering hits him. Seungcheol was dunked into the pool earlier courtesy of his cousin, Hansol, and now is laughing with Mingyu and Wonwoo. Jeonghan makes a list of the things he wants to thank Seungcheol's friends for.

"You gotta stop the teasing though because you might kill him even before you get the chance to ride his dick. Have you seen his face earlier?"

Jeonghan makes a pout at his bestfriend, who then admonishes him with a wide stare. "I was just being playful."

"You are a horny drunk," Joshua accuses and Seokmin snickers from beside him.

Jeonghan only wonders why Seungcheol never picks up on his advances. Was he uninterested? He thought once, since he never really paid attention that much to Jeonghan during his first weeks in the store. There were stolen glances and awkward smiles given but that was just it. Nothing bordering friendly or even casual. But then, he starts noticing the small gestures, like how he tunes in the heater when Jeonghan starts to tremble inside his sweater or how he helps him in the back room when there's too many deliveries left to stack. So he doesn't hate him.. at least.

Was he aloof? Jeonghan doesn't know but he manages to make a shot inside the last cup remaining on Seungcheol's side and Jeonghan knew he's winning.

There's no paper under the cup so Seungcheol supposes he should take the shot.

Jeonghan interrupts, "Cheol, you want to win?" Joshua's hand shoots to slap Jeonghan by the hip. He curses.

Seungcheol is now looking up at him with sudden interest; his head is tilted to the side and it should have been adorable but he is naked from the waist up so it's sinful. "I'll give you a truth or a dare."

A chorus of '_oohs_' fills the room and Jeonghan feels the excitement thrum in the tips of his fingers. Joshua is incessantly tugging the belt loop of his jeans, probably in hopes of stopping him from what he's about to do.

But Jeonghan does not deter. He's not gonna step out of this party without kissing Choi Seungcheol.

"I'll have a truth."

"Do you want to kiss me?" His eyes bore through Seungcheol.. familiar, wide, innocent but very, very convincing.

It instantly works, like a switch flicked off flooding both Jeonghan and Seungcheol's reasoning in pitch black darkness. Sounds like alcohol. "Come here."

The intense look on Seungcheol's face and the growl that comes along with it make Jeonghan weak in the knees. He doesn't know where the confidence has come from. Perhaps, Seungcheol is just really competitive. 

And then it _dawns_ on him.. just when Seungcheol has him pressed against the pool table, his naked glory also pressing against the mesh shirt he's wearing that he's about to kiss Seungcheol in front of everyone in their uni.

A hand grabs his nape and then a warm mouth ghosts onto the corner of his lips, patting, asking for permission. Jeonghan tilts his head to catch Seungcheol's lip on his.

It's nowhere near innocent. Damn the audience around them.

Jeonghan's hands press hard on the plane of Seungcheol's chest, while the older's other hand lifts him up on the table. Their tongue teases into the mouth of the other and while Seungcheol snugs himself in between Jeonghan's legs, a wanton sound escapes the blond's lips. 

Seungcheol wasn't careful neither. He was demanding, coaxing with every bite and nips, every pull of his hips. He likes how hard Seungcheol was gripping him. He makes it good and satisfying enough that when he pulls away, Jeonghan whines.

"It's not even a dare," Chan, a freshman, mumbles from the side, confused of what the fuck just happened.

•••

"Seungcheol is an asshole." Jeonghan laments through an unbelievable hangover. He makes an exaggerated shaking of his limb as if he's cursing whatever Seungcheol is doing right now. Joshua knows he's faking the tears but it doesn't stop the blond from arranging the ref magnets to read _'seungcheol is an asshole'_. "This is your fault, Shua!" He whines again and dunks himself on the coffee placed on the kitchen island.

"Dump him before you commit your whole life to him," Jihoon says through his cereal. Jeonghan doesn't know how he manages to function after a night of heavy drinking but that's Jihoon. No one questions Lee Jihoon.

Jeonghan tilts his head so that his cheek is pressed against the cool marble. It's soothing and Jeonghan just wants to stay there his whole life. "But he already has me by the neck."

It's true. Who doesn't fall in love with a face like that? Seungcheol makes him feel like his skin lights on fire. He makes him want to look forward to every interaction, every little gestures.

He remembers Seungcheol taking care of him last night, fussing over him with such adoration and at the same time worry. He wasn't too drunk but he pretends he was, _for research_. He remembers him asking "Will you be okay on your own?" and when Jeonghan whines (a whine is always effective), Seungcheol only laughs and says, "Alright, I'll be just right here, Hannie."

He remembers every '_Hannie_', every '_sweetheart_', every '_angel_', every '_baby_'. _Fuck, fuck, fuck._

Jisoo patters around the kitchen, looking just as awful as he was, and when he spots Jeonghan groaning into the marble tabletop, he frowns, "Stop thinking with your dick."

"This is your fault! You should have stopped me from kissing him." He flails, cheeks red but also cute on his frown. "Who kisses a person and not ask them on a date?"

"Asshole Choi Seungcheol," Jihoon supplies.

"Jeonghan, stop being an idiot and go ask him out instead of waiting for him to ask you out."

Jeonghan shoots up—albeit the headache—and somehow lights up, "Actually, Jisoo, that's a really good idea."

Jihoon chokes on his cereal, "You were just calling him an asshole, literally, two minutes ago.

"Eh, maybe not really."

•••

In the next following week, things quite certainly have tilted a bit. From where Jeonghan was wide-eyed, oblivious and innocent, shows a whole 360 degree change of character. He's now a tad more touchy, playful, with an undercurrent of intent that lies beneath the light squeezing of his bicep or the practiced "_oops_" every time Jeonghan manages to "_fuck up_" and lock them both inside the back room.

Seungcheol does not understand him at all. It's already bad that his obvious crush on Jeonghan has shown during that house party. It was a slip off on him. Whilst it was only an obvious drunken mistake in Jeonghan's part or so that's what Seungcheol thinks.

Wait, does Jeonghan like him? Probably not.

Being extra friendly is good.

Now they're pressed against the glass doors and sat on the tiled floor, looking through the evening streets. Christmas decors have been generously spread outside. The fairy lights twinkle as if stars into the night. It's pouring snow and they're both trapped without dinner.

"Should we just run and brave though the storm?" Seungcheol notices the annoyed pout of the other.

He smiles, "And have you shaking inside your boots? Risk of hypothermia? Sounds like a no to me."

The blond gives him googly eyes. It's practiced, meant to be pretty and innocent. Jeonghan is fucking with his heartstrings. "I won't certainly die on you."

Was Seungcheol so, so weak.

"Call snow patrol if I don't get back in fifteen minutes... or 911." He suddenly gets up, startling the other, he picks his thick coat by the rack and wraps himself with it. "Maybe I could die for you. What food do you want?"

•••

"He doesn't pick up on my signs. He's a total idiot."

"Who are we talking about again?" Seungkwan queries, another member of Jeonghan's adoption of people into his friend group. He's drinking wine inside his soda can. 

"The co-worker," Minghao answers, slight Chinese accent blending into his suave Korean. He's also drinking wine but in a fancy wine glass.

Jeonghan looks up from his cocoon of blankets and wiggles himself over to Joshua so he could dig a hand in the popcorn bowl.

"Maybe he has his integrity checked, like, uh, don't date co-workers." Joshua, the devil, coughs. "Unlike someone we know."

Seungkwan frowns from underneath the glare of Hell's Kitchen from the TV, "Is he even worth your stress, hyung?"

Seokmin practically jumps from where he was seated on the couch, towards his boyfriend on the floor. Jeonghan is not bitter but he rolls his eyes and makes a gagging sound.

"You haven't seen Choi Seungcheol, Kwan. You haven't seen him."

•••

"Cheollie, the deliveries have arrived. I'm thinking of buying a harness that would probably look good with one of my clothes. What do you think? Cream or Red?"

The flirting has become a real thing, just as Seungcheol thought it has died down three weeks after Soonyoung's party.

Jeonghan now has made nicknames for him and makes a joke of pulling Seungcheol around so they stand directly both under a mistletoe.

It's totally unfair for Jeonghan to find his situation hilarious while he laments about kissing his mouth again for the second time around. Just plain not fair!

"Red," Seungcheol says with nonchalance. But along with the flirting comes Seungcheol's subtle resistance to it. He was good. Jeonghan was playful, he could live with it (read: bury his feelings and get over pining on someone he doesn't have a chance with).

"Could you lock the shop door for me?"

Okay, maybe he could get away with following Jeonghan's little orders around. It won't hurt.

When Jeonghan emerges from the back room with nothing but his pants and the leather harness snug around his pale white neck with metal chains dangling to hug his torso, Seungcheol finally did have a mind break.

"What do you think?" 

He was so, so pretty. The red leather complements well with his red, swollen (from the cold) lips. The shy look and blush doesn't help Seungcheol the littlest bit, who only dumbly stares at the pert pink buds on display, and all he could think about was _'oh god, I can see Jeonghan's nipples'_.

Seungcheol opens his mouth and then closes it again like he was a fish out of water. He tries again though and says in the most friendly, most pathetic, most platonic way, "That's... very, very nice, Jeonghan."

Yeah, he'll definitely have him sign his death certificate.

Seungcheol manages to avoid Jeonghan for a week.

•••

Bad idea.

Hell hath no fury like a Leo supplied with a competition.

What is he doing. Seungcheol has been eavesdropping by the second aisle for minutes ever since someone started talking to Jeonghan by the counter. The male has a threatening aura on him but somehow this doesn't frazzle Jeonghan. Instead, he keeps on encouraging him, answering his questions that Seungcheol thinks borders on sexual and harassing but even Jeonghan still minds to lean over the counter to show how every item works.

As a senior, he needs to have a grasp on the situation. He has been working in a kink shop for years and creeps were never welcome inside. But Jeonghan probably is making a fool out of himself because everytime he locks eyes with Seungcheol, the contempt in his face shows and the creep is then more encouraged with a subtle touch or a half-assed smile.

_What has he ever done to him?_

When he hears the man raise his voice at Jeonghan for declining him his number, Seungcheol swoops in.

"I'm gonna have to ask you to leave the premise," Seungcheol curtly says, but his rage spikes upon seeing the man's tight grip on Jeonghan's wrist. He was hurting but he tries not to make it show.

The man shifts his stance and stabs Seungcheol's chest with his finger, "Look, man, mind your own business."

The blond's agitated '_don't do that_' drowns in Seungcheol's growl, when he threatens, "Leave him alone or you won't be able to eat properly again once I'm done with you."

Suddenly it's not about the store's policies anymore. It's '_leave him alone_'; it's suddenly about wanting Jeonghan safe and not scared like he is right now.

Seungcheol surprises himself with that. Maybe he doesn't only have a slight infatuation on Jeonghan. Maybe he's already in too deep and no matter what retracing he does, he is already lost with the chance of getting out unscathed.

Gods, he must be in love with him.

_Holy shit?_

•••

They found themselves in the back room fifteen minutes before close down after a painful three hours of not talking to each other.

A bit awkward, Jeonghan may say. The odd stranger left but not without threatening Seungcheol about breaking in the store and thrashing it in the future.

Seungcheol just exasperatedly sighs. "File a complaint on him and make sure you describe him well so we can give the manager a heads up. It would be too early for a restraining order but it's not bad to take precautions."

Jeonghan fidgets with his backpack and skirts around the topic. He knows it was his fault because it was only a stunt to make Seungcheol jealous but it backfired and now he's guilty. "I'm sorry," is what he whispers and then he ducks so he doesn't see Seungcheol's glare at him.

But then Seungcheol tsks, "Next time, don't flirt with customers," and now he's not so guilty anymore.

Jeonghan feels betrayed as he snaps his head up at Seungcheol, "Excuse me? What did you say?"

It slowly dawns on the older that what he said was out of line so instead, he backtracks, "You know what, Jeonghan? I'm tired. Let's not do this."

This has become Jeonghan's finish line. He was gonna drop everything on Seungcheol so he would not regret every single thing after. "It wasn't my fault that that happened. If you so despise me and my little crush on you, then you can shun me but you don't have the right to call me a flirt when I was just being nice to a fucking customer. It's my fucking job!"

Seungcheol looks utterly horrified at the outburst. He was standing there, rigid and Jeonghan kind of hates him for maintaining a completely emotionless face even after what he just said.

"You are such an asshole, you know that? I was supposed to ask you out today but you blew it off. Or maybe I blew it off. Whatever, bullet dodged."

And then Seungcheol is left staring at the door when Jeonghan shuts it on his face.

•••

"Come on, we're going to Busan," Jeonghan has his face pressed on Joshua's neck. He has been planning on (dramatically) crying the whole night and maybe watch Gordon Ramsay call his chefs "_rubbish_" or "_imbeciles_" but the younger seems to have a different idea on his mind. "Come on, Hannie."

Seungkwan helps Joshua pull him out under his covers. He's being cooed and coerced but he does nothing but limp because he doesn't want anything right now but for his pathetic little feelings to wash off along his tubs of tears. He thrashes on his bed and chants under his breathing a string of '_asshole, asshole, asshole_'.

"Seokie, he called me a flirt!" He flails again and another set of tears come along the tiny prick of pain in his fragile heart.

"Well, you did kiss him for a dare and stripped in front of him during work hours."

"Not helping!" Minghao gets a pillow to the face by Joshua. "Come on, Hannie. You're a big boy now and you would not let dick get through you. Your bag is packed and all we're gonna do is load it on the car. We'll wait for you to get changed. We'll be downstairs, yeah?"

When he hears his bedroom door close, he wonders if he'll ever get to see Seungcheol's dick. Curse Joshua, now his tears are back.

•••

When Joshua said '_get changed_', Jeonghan meant wearing his ugliest Christmas sweater and swiping a tub of ice cream he can snack on through the midnight ride from the fridge, before going down the parking area to join his friends.

Jeonghan isn't able to do that though because halfway through his spoonful of strawberries and cream, he opens his door to Seungcheol.

The man doesn't even have to open his mouth to have Jeonghan start crying. He panics, hands immediately cupping the blond's cheeks to wipe the fresh batch of tears rolling down his cheeks (with difficulty because of the spoon in his mouth).

"I'm sorry," Seungcheol whispers so, so softly, as if a spike of volume could break Jeonghan into tiny dainty pieces. "I'm sorry I was such an asshole to you. It wasn't excusable. And now you're crying. Hannie, please don't cry."

"Don't tell me what to do," he basically wails around the spoon, sniffles and then whacks Seungcheol on his chest. 

It was supposed to be something funny. Jeonghan's eyes are bloodshot and he's wearing a bright red pullover with a snowman right in the middle of it but Seungcheol only looks at him with such adoration in his eyes that the younger wants to melt. "I'm sorry," Seungcheol mouths again before he pulls him into a bone crushing hug. Jeonghan whines into the touch and tucks his head against Seungcheol's neck. "I'm sorry. I was so confused with my feelings that I did not notice your reciprocation. I thought you were just fucking with me. When you said you like me, I was so terrified thinking I might have fucked up my last chance with you. I've liked you.. I've adored you for a while now."

Jeonghan pulls away from him and the crestfallen expression on Seungcheol's face at the gesture was certainly enjoyable. He leaves him by the doorway, picks up his phone and leaves Joshua a message that says, "Yeah, I'm not going to Busan."

Seungcheol gets dragged inside.

•••

When his group of friends finally make their way back to the apartment, they expected another tantrum from Jeonghan. But instead, they walk in on him straddling Seungcheol's lap and sucking faces with him.

Joshua curses.

"Oh, so he's the Choi Seungcheol," Seungkwan could only say.

•••

Jeonghan was just getting into the mood, having Seungcheol heady below him as his mouth latches onto every skin presented on him while he grinds down the said man's thigh. 

It has been six exciting (and horny) months of being Seungcheol's boyfriend (of course, the so-called honeymoon phase), and he wasn't starved off of affection. Jeonghan wonders when will Seungcheol get tired of his little unpredictable whims.

He's still the same Choi Seungcheol, who blushes like mad fuck everytime Jeonghan does a number on him, still the same asshole who now has the audacity to pick him up as if he's a sack of rice and throw him on the bed everytime he gets a tad bit of attitude. Jeonghan loves him. He hasn't said it but it's much pretty close.

Jeonghan gets yanked harshly off his boyfriend's lap just when Seungcheol's tongue burns so good along the skin in his neck. "You," Joshua stresses, "Get off of each other! Not in my household! What is he doing here?"

Seungcheol shrugs, "Boyfriend privileges?"

"He has issues," Joshua sighs because eventually Jeonghan can't be stopped and now he's back onto his position from earlier but this time with a smug smirk on his lips.

"Babe, want to continue this later at work, hm?" Seungcheol grins.

"Ugh, you're so romantic!" Enter dramatic, exaggerated swooning. "My dream man."

"I hope you both get fired!"

**Author's Note:**

> Let's interact on twt! Or on cc (pflaume) wherever you find comfortable! 💖


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